Havelock Hills

Bridge Pa Triangle

Woodthorpe Terraces

Sustainability

Te Mata Estate is committed to improving its performance in terms of environmental, social and economic sustainability through the Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand (SWNZ) programme.

SWNZ was established in 1995 as an industry initiated program directed through New Zealand Winegrowers. SWNZ aims to minimize any impact on the environment in the vineyard and winery and to continually monitor and reduce the use of power, water and fuel resources.

As the program was rolled out Te Mata Estate’s vineyards were amongst the first to be accredited in 1995, as was the winery in 2005, when we were part of a very small initial group having all vineyards and the winery accredited.

Every Te Mata Estate wine displays the SWNZ symbol as your assurance that all of our wine production, from vine to bottle, is fully audited and accredited.

Nature Friendly/ Vineyard

All blocks use a permanent grass sward, and mowers direct the cut grass under the vine row. The resulting mulch reduces weed growth and helps conserve soil moisture.

Herbicides are used sparingly, with techniques such as undervine mowing, undervine cultivation and the use of sheep at strategic times reducing overall herbicide use.
All vineyards use variations of the regulated deficit irrigation system, where just enough water is supplied to keep the vine healthy without encouraging excessive growth.

Cover crops such as phacelia, buckwheat and alyssum have all been used as companion plants to encourage beneficial insects.

Energy Conscious/ Winery

Records and operating procedures are required for all operations from grape intake to waste water and waste by-products.

Emphasis is placed on minimizing water, power and fuel use. Water and power use are benchmarked against industry standards in New Zealand and overseas. Soft cleaning products, recycling of packaging and waste minimization are encouraged.